Natsumi's Story
by Levity
Summary: Hey there, horrible title! A girl named Natsumi moves to a new town. She soon meets the familiar creature, PiX, and eventually meets a lot of new friends along the way. Just who are these people? Let's have some DDR fun!
1. Chapter 1: Memories and a New Phase

DISCLAIMER: I do not own DDR, but I kind of wish I did. :o

YEAY! My DDR fanfiction has now been started! Now, listen, I looked at tons of sites and even other fanfictions to get ideas of the character's personalities and everything but if you see any flaws then let me know. But this thing was calling out to me! I swear, I've been having ideas everywhere. XD Also, you may notice that I won't describe clothes much, because I find that I'm bad at it, but you know what the characters look like anyway... right? Don't worry, I'll try my best! XD And, as for their ages, I looked around for these too, so... I'll just go ahead and mention them in the fic since I'm going to be using quite a lot of the characters XD Including my favorites, Akira, Yuni, and Emi.

The main summary of this story is: A girl named Natsumi Kuzuki has moved into a new town, where she has no friends until she finds a lost little creature out in the streets. She finds out that it's called a PiX, and she comes from the planet Velocity. Soon after, she meets the DDR characters we all know and love. But it gets really good, so read! XD Now, without further ado... chapter 1! (Natsumi is 15, by the way, and some of her friends that she knew in her old town are based on some of my friends in rl.. only their names have been either changed into random ones or her nicknames XD 'Kayshuttingupnow)

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Chapter 1- Memories and a New Phase of Life

"Natsumi, I'm going out!"

"Okay, mom!"

It was usually like this. Natsumi's mom was never home, and even when her parents were still together, her dad was hardly ever home, either. So, Natsumi had to find her own ways of entertainment most of the time, which was usually playing Dance Dance Revolution with her good friend Moe. But, her good friends lived far away now, and so everything was going to be different.

Her mom had chosen the summer as their time to move. That way, there wouldn't be any... awkward school transfers. Natsumi would always be saying "Take what life throws at you, sometimes you just can't change things," but now just seemed... different than before. For the next 15 minutes or so after her mom left, Natsumi was looking at cards and random little things she recieved before she had left. She dug out a photo of her and her friend standing next to each other next to a big tree at a park with ice cream treats in their hands. On the back, it read:

"Hey, Natsu, don't get too upset, what with leaving and all. I'll be calling you every once in a while, and you can call me, so we can still keep in touch. Remember the tent, whore!

Moe"

Natsumi sighed, photo album spread out across the living room floor. _"Well, I could always explore this place to get to know it better and all... as long as I don't get lost," _Natsumi thought to herself. She knew her mom was going to be gone the whole rest of the day, maybe not even home until very early in the morning the next day. Natsumi didn't mind being alone, but she couldn't stand being bored. Lazily leaving her scattered cards, photos, and other things on the floor, and deciding to pick them up later, Natsumi grabbed her purse with certain items- like her wallet and things- in it, and left the house, locking the door behind her. She had left with her casual clothes on, which was a light blue T-shirt, a jacket over it which she had recieved from her dad before moving away, and dark blue capri pants.

This town, or, more like a city, had been much larger than the little town she used to live in. As her mom was driving her and other things over to their new house along with the moving truck following them, she noticed that this town had a large number of arcades and dance clubs. She didn't pay it much mind at first, but it would all begin to make sense to her. The purple-haired teen girl was going through a tough phase in her life. She'd seen a lot of this in movies and TV shows and everything, but she didn't know it'd actually happen to her. As she was walking, she thought she could hear the sound of a little girl crying. She thought that maybe it was her own imagination, since she was all tied up in thought and all, but when she heard it again, she knew that maybe she wasn't just imagining it this time. She tried to figure out where the sound was coming from, which caused her to lose track of where she was going, but she didn't really care. As she got closer and heard the sound again, which was louder this time, she found 3 boys who were throwing rocks and trash at a small girl. The boys looked to be 10 or 11- typical, immature boys- and were laughing and giggling and shouting things like "Ha, look at the freak girl cower in fear! Freak, freak!" while the small, uniquely-dressed pixie-looking creature was crouched down on the ground, hands over her head, trying to protect herself. She couldn't run away, for she was cornered against the wall of a building. "PiX doesn't like this! Young, human males are being cruel to PiX!" The creature shouted. She pleaded a few times for the boys to stop, but they ignored her cries.

Natsumi wanted to do something. She didn't like how the boys were tormenting this young creature, and it reminded her very much of how she used to be treated at school. Angry emotions flared up, and so she walked up behind one of the boys and tapped him on the head. "Hey, you, what exactly do you think you guys are doing?"

The boy turned around, the others eventually turning around with him. "And just who the heck are you??" He asked in a rather rude manner, "Another freak girl?"

"Hey," One of the other boys said, "Maybe this is the freak girl's older sister, here to fight us for hurting her younger sister!"

"Or maybe..." The third boy joined in, "She's the freak girl's freaky MOTHER!"

"Nah, she's way too young," The first one replied, "Unless that's how they' re supposed to look. They _are_ freaky, after all."

Natsumi sighed. Never would she understand young boys. "Look," She said, "Stop being immature and just leave the poor girl alone. She did no harm to you."

"But that's where you're WRONG!" The second boy shouted, "She harms the whole entire WORLD by being a a FREAK! And if you're actually going to HELP this freak out, then that means that _you're_ a freak, too!" Soon, all three boys gasped and shouted in unison, "RUN AWAY FROM THE FREAK GIRLS!" The three boys then all ran off behind the building they were near, giggling and snickering along the way.

"Stupid boys..." Natsumi muttered under her breath, and then slowly approached the still-crouched creatue on the ground. She got down to her knees to the creature's level and asked "Hey, are you all right? Did those boys hurt you too much?"

"... It's safe to stand up now?" The girl sat up and turned around to face Natsumi. "Human female came to save PiX?"

"Yes, the boys are gone now," Natsumi replied, "Are you lost?"

"PiX is lost from her home planet. She does not know how she got to this planet who the beings here call 'Earth'. But she thinks it's safe to tell this to the female human who decided to help PiX. She would like to ask, if it's not too much, if the human has a name?"

"Oh, I'm Natsumi. And I'm guessing you're PiX?"

"Well, that's what we are called, us creatures, but I do not seem to have a name, so you can just call me PiX. Unless Natsumi has a good nickname for PiX!"

"Well..." Natsumi looked at the purple coloring of the PiX's outfit, and thought for a moment. "How about... Violet?"

"Ooh! Violet is a pretty name! PiX likes it!" The little creature replied. "PiX wants to say thank you! Or, should I say, Violet wants to say thank you!" She stood up and instantly hugged Natsumi, who was still at her level, since the PiX had been much smaller than Natsumi.

"Hey, you know, now that I have nicknamed you, you might as well stay at my house if you want. At least until you find a way back to your home planet."

"... Is it really true?" The PiX asked with big, glistening eyes, "Natsumi will give a home to PiX until she can get back to planet Velocity?"

"If you want, I mean, it's not too much of a trouble to me. My mom's always away, which will make it even easier. But, if you ever are home when she is, then make sure to not let her see you. I'm going to try and keep you a secret from her."

"You mean PiX won't be a trouble to Natsumi when she tries doing this?"

"Well, I mean, if my mom ever _did_ find out, she wouldn't really care, anyway. But it's just to be safe."

"... Violet the PiX is very grateful to Natsumi..." She said, giving Natsumi another hug, this time clinging to her shirt. "Just make sure no more young male humans get to her again," She added fearfully.

Natsumi giggled a bit. "Don't worry, if they ever get near me again, I'll make sure they regret ever messing with innocent girls again!"

PiX giggled along with Natsumi. "Yay! Natsumi will get them!"

"Now..." Natsumi said, getting back up, the PiX sitting on her shoulders, "I kinda lost track of where I was going when I was looking for you... so I might need to ask for directions."

PiX got kind of worried when Natsumi said this. "Is it PiX's fault that Natsumi is lost?

"No, I'm new here, so this was bound to happen." Natsumi decided that she would ask a random shop or person for directions, like her dad did when he was driving her somewhere in their old town. As she was walking, PiX on her shoulders, she eventually started quickening her pace, and in her haste and thought, she all of a sudden bumped into a person on a sidewalk next to a clothing store. The PiX nearly fell off of Natsumi's shoulders, and the person who she bumped into dropped a bag she was carrying. "Gah, I'm so sorry," Natsumi immediately said, picking up the bag for the blue-haired girl she ran into and handing it back to her. "I don't know where I'm going or what I'm doing. My apologies."

"Oh, it's all right," The girl replied, smiling, "But are you lost?"

-End of chapter 1-


	2. Chapter 2: New Friends, New Feelings

Yes, 'tis.. chapter 2! I have been motivated to write this really quickly. I'm checking it and everything, don't worry... by the way, I know this is off-topic, but I know my Animal Crossing one-shot contains a few mistakes. That's the result of the spacebar frequently acting up and being a whore, and so that's why I've been reading over these things a lot. My Hamtaro fanfiction might sound different from the writing style I have now because I had been writing it in the beginning of the year, became unmotivated, halted it for a while, and then continued it again. So yes. That fic gets kind of weird in some parts, but anyways, back to this one. You won't have to worry about me getting unmotivated for this one. But... in order to make that SURE not to happen... Bizz needs reviews. Lots and lots of reviews. Mwhahaha. Read now, because Bizz knows where you live. Smacked

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Chapter 2- New Friends, New Feelings

Natsumi sweatdropped. "Well, sort of, I was exploring when I lost track of where my house was. I'm... sort of new here."

"Haha, it's okay," The girl replied, "This kind of thing happens a lot. Even sometimes to people who know the city better. This place is a little confusing, after all. I can help you if you want."

"Well, uh, do you know where 'Green Street' is?" Natsumi asked, "I only need to know that much, after that I think I can find my house."

"Well," The girl answered, "All you do is walk down there, and take a left," She said, pointing in the direction left of the clothing store. "Then you walk down there and you should be able to find your way after that."

"Oh, thanks. I kind of thought so..."

The girl laughed. "Mind telling me your name?" She asked.

"Oh, I'm Natsumi."

"Ah, that's a cool name. I'm Emi."

"That's a cool name too... Emi."

Emi laughed again a little bit, and then looked at the PiX on Natsumi's shoulders, who, noticing that Emi was looking right at her, tried to hide her face. Emi blinked in curiosity. "Who's this? She's so cute!"

"Oh, this is... erm... Violet," Natsumi said, finding use of the PiX's newly thought-up nickname.

"Violet, huh? Aww, she's just SO CUTE!" Emi gave the blushing PiX a hug, and then started rummaging in her own purse that she had been carrying along with the bag she dropped when she and Natsumi bumped into each other. She pulled out a pen, and then a few seconds later, a slip of paper. She clicked the pen open and wrote her phone number on the slip of paper. She then handed it to Natsumi. "Here. You said you were new, so maybe we can become friends and hang out sometime," She said, smiling. "Maybe you can even meet my other friends sometime, too. I'm sure that they would think you are pretty awesome." She put the pen back in her purse. Natsumi then told Emi to wait for a second, and took out her own pen and a sheet of paper out as well. Natsumi wrote her cell phone number down on a corner of the paper and then ripped that corner off, folded it, and handed it to Emi. "We don't have a home phone at the moment," Natsumi said, "But me and my mom both have cell phones, so here's my cell phone number."

Emi smiled again, then said, "I have to go, but it was nice meeting you, Natsumi!"

"Same with you, Emi!" Natsumi replied back as Emi started to continue her walk down the sidewalk. The sidewalk next to the random clothing store... Natsumi would forever think of it as a 'place to remember'. Natsumi sighed happily at the thought of yet another new friend in this strange, new city. She then continued her walk in the other direction back to her house, remember what directions Emi told her to go in. As she started to approach her house, she suddenly said, "Well, Violet, now you can see my home. There's still a lot of boxes scattered everywhere, from the move and all, but it's a pretty large home. You see, our family is... fairly rich, so, it's kinda what makes things easier." She took a house key out her purse and unlocked the door, then opened it. The living room was one of the largest rooms of the house, along with the dining room and the spare room next to Natsumi's bedroom. As Natsumi had mentioned, there were still many moving boxes along by the walls, some empty, but most were still left full. Natsumi's cards and things were also still scattered about on the floor. "As you can see, we're still getting things set up and all. And the things on the floor... pay them no mind, I'll just pick them up later." She lifted the PiX off of her shoulders, and set her on the floor. "PiX is fascinated!" She replied, looking around, "I'm in a human's home!" Her fascination and wonderment had her all of a sudden talking in first person, but it wore off quickly. "So, what will Natsumi do now?" She asked.

"Well, I think I'm going to have you stay in my room... so I'm going to show you where it is and everything." Natsumi led the PiX down a hallway to a door with a sign on it that read "You are now entering my tent", something that she had recieved from her friend Moe as a birthday present. It wasn't the only present she had recieved from her, but it was one of her favorites. She opened the door, and most of her furniture had already been moved in there, but the room was still a bit bare, as her walls, which were light purple (and painted as a request), were still lacking her hanging shelves and colorful posters. "So, remember, whenever my mom comes home, you are to hide in my closet right here." She gestered to a door next to her large dresser, and then walked up and opened it. The closet was fairly roomy, even if it were to have all of Natsumi's things in it. "She's never home for too long, and if she ever is then I'll check on you frequently, so don't worry about getting too lonely or anything." She smiled. "So, until you find a way to get back to your home planet, you can stay here if you want."

"Once again, PiX wants to say that she is grateful to Natsumi..." The PiX replied, hugging Natsumi again. It was clear that the two were about to become great friends.

As the two remained in Natsumi's room, all the while talking to each other about where they both came from, it had started to get late. The dinner that they had both had while they conversed were two mini pizzas that Natsumi had microwaved for them, and noticed that the PiX really had a liking for pizza. Natsumi glanced at her clock later on, finding out it was already 8:30 at night. "Well, PiX, I have to take a shower. If my mom comes home or anything, remember what I told you." PiX nodded, and so, Natsumi then set her purse on her dresser and walked off down the hallway to where the bathroom was. The curious PiX noticed a book sitting on the dresser next to Natsumi's purse. She attempted to reach it- what with being kind of small and all- and succeeded. The book was titled, "A Tree of Rememberance." PiX decided to read it, and as she was getting into the book, she heard the door of the bathroom open, and Natsumi walking out. She had sleeping pajamas on, a loose, light purple gown, and pink shorts underneath, ansd had also brushed her teeth for the night. She came into the room and noticed the PiX reading her book. "Oh, so you like reading, eh?" Natsumi asked, smiling. "Do you like that book?"

"Yes, and yeah, PiX thinks it is really good..." The PiX replied, smiling back.

"Well, I think we should get to sleep soon. I know it's only a little after 9pm, but I'm getting really tired. However... would you mind sleeping under my bed, just in case my mom comes back in the middle of the night and checks my room? Since you're small enough, you'll have a lot of room under there. I have a couple of sleeping bags and a small pillow that's perfect for your size that you can use."

"Oh, okay. Violet the PiX will accept."

"All right." Even though it took a few minutes, Natsumi moved her bed to set up the PiX's bed, and then moved it back to it's original spot. "There, all set. You're lucky my bed is tall, too." Natsumi laughed, and then noticed that the house's air conditioner turned on, meaning that her mom had turned it on before she left. No wonder the house was so cool, and yet, Natsumi liked it that way, anyway. As they both got into their beds, they both said good night to each other, and Natsumi switched her lamp off, which was on a small stand right next to her bed.

Natsumi had dreamt that night. In her dream, she was standing in the middle of a forest, and was lost. But, for some reason, a giant bird let Natsumi ride on it, and the bird flew her to different towns, forests, countries. Not exactly understanding what was happening, another giant bird came and started to attack the one that Natsumi was riding on. It became like a creature battle in some strange anime. The evil bird that was attacking Natsumi's bird could breathe fire, while the other one could breathe ice. Natsumi then woke up to the sound of her ringtone, which was the DDR song 'MoboMoga', and, since her cell phone was right next to her lamp where she had set it just in case someone called her, she answered. It was 8:30 in the morning, which was only about a half hour before the time Natsumi usually woke up in the morning. "Yeah?" She asked.

"Hey. Did I wake you?" Replied the voice on the other line. Natsumi recognized this voice. It was Emi. "Oh, Emi, hi! No, it's okay, I usually wake up around this time."

"Oh, that's good," Emi replied with relief, "It's just, me and a few friends are going down to one of the city's arcades later today and was wondering if you could join us. It's a great oppritunity to meet new people, you know!"

"Oh, I would love to," Natsumi answered, "What time are you going?"

"We were planning on going there around 10am. If you want, we can meet at the clothes store you met me at, if you can remember where it is. We're deciding to walk today, instead of driving. Y'know, for a little exercise. Does that sound okay to you?"

"All right, that sounds good," Natsumi agreed, "And I think I remember, so I'll see you there. But, wait, would it be all right if I brught Violet with me?"

"Oh, it's okay, you can. We'll be meeting you there around 9:45."

"All right."

Emi then hung up. Natsumi got out of bed and noticed that the PiX was still sleeping. She didn't want to leave her alone, so Natsumi attempted to wake the PiX up by getting down to the floor and gently nudging her. "Hey, PiX, time to get up!" She said quietly.

The PiX stirred, then blinked her eyes open. "Wow... PiX had a nice dream..." She then turned to her other side to look at Natsumi. "Oh, good morning, Natsumi."

"Good morning, Violet. Emi just called me. She wants us to meet her and one of her friends at one of the arcades here today. Do you want to come with me?"

"Is it okay with Emi?" PiX asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Yeah, I asked her, and she says it's okay. We have to meet her at 9:45am, though, at the one clothes store that we first met her at."

"Okay. PiX will get ready with Natsumi, then."

"All right." Natsumi felt a little happier. She knew that this was going to be the start of a very fun day.

-End of chapter 2-


	3. Chapter 3: The Arcade

Yes... it's chapter 3. Bizz still doesn't have any reviews, but Bizz has let some non users on her msn read it. This fanfic is lonely... But Bizz won't give up! And Bizz still knows where you live!! But yes... Things might be a little boring right now, but they do get good, really. And I had trouble figuring out the genre for this thing... it does get romantic later on, and kind of awkward. XD YAY FOR AWKWARDNESS. But yes. Bizz is very happy at the moment. Weee. But nowz, ONWARD TO CHAPTER 3!

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Chapter 3- The Arcade

That morning, Natsumi took a shower again and dressed. She liked being clean, which was a kind of obvious characteristic about her personality. The PiX tried taking a shower as well, even though she wasn't used to showers on the human world yet. Natsumi had showed her how, and she did seem familiar with it, but the main problem was how little she was. It was her outfit, too, since Natsumi couldn't find a different outfit that the PiX could wear, so she had quickly and gently washed the PiX's purple outfit and dried it with her hair drier. Afterwards, they went into the kitchen to get some cereal, and Natsumi noticed a note on the fridge. Taking it off, she read it:

"Natsumi,

I came home at 11pm last night. I noticed you were already asleep, so I said good night to you while you were muttering something in your sleep about riding on birds or something. It is 6am, and I am leaving again right now. Sorry, but you know, I have a buisness and everything to attend to. If you are going to go out today, remember to take your vitamins as always. Well, I don't know when I will be back tonight, but I love you, Natsumi.

-Mom"

Natsumi smiled, and also sighed in relief that her mom didn't notice the sleeping PiX under her bed. She folded the note and put it in her purse for good luck and safekeeping. She checked the clock on her cell phone and noticed that it was already 9:15am, so she and the PiX ate pretty quickly. Natsumi had to take vitamins every day to keep her weak immune system in check- she tended to get sick a lot, and this is something she had mentioned to PiX the day before. After taking them, she grabbed her purse and cell phone and, before leaving, noticed that her things on the floor had been picked up. "Whoops," She muttered to herself, "Sorry, mom."

She didn't have much trouble finding the clothes store, which was a surprise to her. The PiX was back on Natsumi's shoulders, looking around at random passerby. She would wave at cars that passed by on the roads, and a little girl in the backseat of one of the cars even waved back. It was a pretty bright and sunny morning, something both the PiX and Natsumi enjoyed. The two waited paitently for about 10 minutes when they then saw Emi and four others walking towards them. Natsumi waved, and Emi waved back. When they all met together, Emi started introducing her friends to Natsumi. One of them had brown hair and a goatee, and looked only a couple of years older than Emi. "First of all, this is Rage," Emi said, "He's... my boyfriend." She blushed a little bit. PiX blinked in curiosity, and Emi continued, gestering to a girl who looked right about Emi's age, and had long, dark blue hair. In a way, she almost looked a little shy. "This is Alice," Emi said, and then she gestered to a girl who seemed a little younger than Emi in a way, but was really close. She had blonde hair that was tied into two pigtails, and they reached down to a little below her shoulders. "This is Yuni, and the boy next to her," She then gestered to a boy who was taller and looked older than Yuni, "This is her boyfriend, Akira. Yeah, I know I kinda brought a crowd, but I wanted you to have lots of new friends here!" She offered a friendly smile, and Natsumi returned it. They all said their greetings, and then Alice said, "To the arcade, then?"

Emi nodded. "Yeah, let's go."

Along the way, PiX tapped Natsumi shoulder. "Natsumi?"

"Yes?" Natsumi answered.

"What is love here on Earth like?" PiX asked, and quietly, so no one would hear.

"What do you mean?"

"PiX just wanted to ask."

"Well," Natsumi began, "It starts when you have feelings for someone. If it's the right person, those feelings grow, and you fall in love with them. This usually ends in a ceremony called a marriage ceremony."

"Oh. That sounds like PiX's planet, except the ceremony is just called a love ceremony,"

"Okay. But why bring it up all of a sudden?"

"Well..." PiX said, "Emi just made PiX curious, that's all."

Natsumi giggled a bit. "Violet, you are just so cute."

As they all reached the arcade, it was obvious what they were going to do. Natsumi always didn't do so well when it came to playing DDR in front of people, since she was really shy, so she just watched at first. She watched PiX try to play with Alice, and PiX was already pretty good, since she could already do standard on certain songs and get Bs. Next were Akira and Yuni, and both of them got As on heavy. Then, it was Rage and Emi. Emi got As on heavy, but Rage got AAs. Before long, it was Natsumi's turn. All of them, even PiX, attempted to get her to play, and eventually they succeeded, as Natsumi got up to play with PiX. They did heavy, even though PiX wasn't exactly the best at it yet. PiX got a C, but Natsumi got an AA. Alice asked her how she got as good as Rage, and Natsumi only replied, "I did this a lot at my old town. It's nothing too big."

Later, they all got lunch at a nearby restaurant. Natsumi insisted that she pay for her own lunch, since she had money and all, even though she hadn't found a job at this new city yet. In her old town, she used to do paper routes and sometimes babysit for her neighbors. She remembered one time when one of the kids she was babysitting somehow got into the bathroom and accidentally locked the door. She had attempted many times and used many methods before she finally got the door open by using a hair pin to get the door unlocked. The kid was unharmed, which was a relief to Natsumi.

After they were all done eating, Emi said, "Well, I think it's time for me to go. What about you guys?"

"I think I'll just go back home then," Alice replied, "I have a few things I have to do later on, anyway."

"Yeah, same with me," Yuni said, "I'll see you guys later, maybe. It was nice meeting you though, Natsumi."

Natsumi smiled. "It was nice meeting you too, Yuni."

Rage laughed a bit. "You're sure good at gathering us together, Emi."

Emi laughed as well. "It was the least I could do for the new girl."

"Well, you did good, Emi. And she's really good at DDR, too."

"I told you, it's nothing!" Natsumi said, her shyness slightly showing a bit.

After they all said their goodbyes, Natsumi returned to her house with PiX. Later on, after dinner, Natsumi's mom returned home. The PiX hid in the closet as Natsumi always instructed her to do, and Natsumi and her mom conversed a bit.

"Hey," Her mom said, "How are you doing today?"

"Oh, fine," Natsumi replied, "Played DDR with some new friends today."

"Oh really? So, you're already making friends?

"Yeah, I ran into a girl at a clothes store near here and we talked a bit. She introduced me to some of her friends today."

"Oh. What are their names?" Her mom asked.

"Well, Emi was the one I met first, and then she introduced me to Alice, Yuni, Akira, and her boyfriend, Rage. Akira seemed kind of quiet, though, but otherwise, they're pretty cool."

"Oh, I see. Well, at least you're having some kind of fun here." Her mom checked her watch, noticed it was 7:30pm, and then said, "Sorry, but I have to go again. I'm really sorry for this, you know. I'll try to be home more on the weekends so we can talk more. Okay?"

"Okay," Natsumi replied. "Bye, mom."

Natsumi's mom hugged her daughter, Natsumi hugging back. Her mom then left the house again, and Natsumi went into her room. "Okay, Violet, you can come out now!"

The little voice came out of the closet, "Yay, PiX was getting kind of lonely in here!" And then the door opened, the PiX coming out.

The night went on, and Natsumi started to feel strangely achy. Paying no mind to it, she and the PiX went to bed at 11pm this time.

-End of chapter 3-


	4. Chapter 4: Friends Stick Together

Lulz. It's chapter 4. My sister's birthday was a few days ago. Raaawrrr. Bizz's sister is happy, and so is Bizz. Bizz likes talking in third person. Like PiX. Teehee. Akira was silent in the last chapter, but he gets an important role in this chapter. Mwhaha. Akira's so awesome. But yeah, I know this chapter's title kind of sucks. x.X; Sorry 'bout that. And I noticed it's kind of short too. But the next one will be longer.. x3

Papersak: Evil Zukin comes in later, don't worry. This is the part where other characters are introduced out of nowhere, and Zukin does get a happy, yet random ending along with the others. x3 But thanks for reading:D

BunniesAreDistractions: Thanks for readingg. :D Yes, I like making characters cute. Teehee.

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Chapter 4- Friends Stick Together

Natsumi had a hard time waking up that morning. She felt dizzy, and didn't know if she should have even gotten up that day, but she did anyway. It was 9am... and it was raining. Violet woke up on her own a few minutes after Natsumi did, and noticed that she was out of bed already. She was in the bathroom taking a shower, but Violet knew something wasn't right. After Natsumi had gotten out of the shower and got dressed, the two realized that they had run out of breakfast foods already. Natsumi's mom was still out as well, and so, even though it made the teen girl feel worse then when she had gotten up, she put her jacket on again to keep her dry, and gave her cell phone to Violet. "I'll only be gone for a little bit," She told the PiX, "So if anyone calls me, then just tell them I'll be back. But, this way, you won't feel too lonely. I just don't want to have to drag you outside with me, it's kind of bad out there. I'm going to get us some food now. Remember what to do if my mom shows up." She then left the house, even though the PiX didn't want her to. She got kind of worried. She knew Natsumi was sick, but Natsumi had tried to hide it.

Time had passed, and Violet grew even more worried. Natsumi should have been back by now. The PiX looked around the house, and noticed the slip of paper that Emi had given Natsumi. It was on a table, scattered about with other things. She took it and Natsumi's cell phone, and dialed Emi's number. Emi answered.

"Hello?" Came Emi's voice.

"Emi... it's Violet," The PiX replied.

"Huh? You sound kind of upset, is something wrong?" Emi asked in concern.

"Well, Natsumi went to get food, and I know she's sick," The PiX's worry caused her to talk in first person again, "But she went out anyway in this rain. And she hasn't been back for a while. I'm afraid, Emi."

There was a pause, and Emi suddenly said, "I've got another call, hold on."

"Okay..." The PiX replied.

Emi switched her call. "Hello?"

"Emi," returned the voice, "It's.. Akira."

"Akira? Wait, is something--"

"It's Natsumi," He interrupted, "Yuni made me call you because she's sort of.. freaked out right now. You see, we found her passed out in one of the shortcuts around where Alice lives. Not a lot of people seem to go through there, so we don't know how long she was like that."

".. Is she okay.. ?"

"Yuni and I managed to get her in the hospital. She's really sick, apparently... but I don't know much more about it. Gah, hold on, Yuni wants to talk to you." There was silence for a few seconds, and then Yuni's voice came on. "I'm scared, Emi. We only just met Natsumi, and I was already starting to get to like her. Akira tries to act all tough, but I know deep down, he is really worried too. He doesn't have to act all calm for me... but I guess it's just the way he is..."

"Well, Violet is on the other line. I'll call you back."

"All right.."

Emi switched the line again. "Violet... are you there?"

"Yeah... I'm still here." The PiX was still talking in first person. It was hard, since talking in third person was a habit, but she managed.

"Well... I guess Yuni and Akira found Natsumi. She's.. in the hospital now."

"... Is Natsumi okay?? What's happened to her?? Is she--"

"We don't know yet. She's really sick, though."

"... I knew she shouldn't have pushed herself..." The PiX replied quietly. She felt some kind of guilt shower over her. She wouldn't be able to live with herself if Natsumi were to die. And what about her mom? Thinking about it made her feel like just jumping off of a cliff and ending it now.

"Hey, it'll be okay," Emi replied, her optimistic side showing, "But you mentioned that you needed food, right?"

"Yeah... but you don't have to worry about me..."

"Aw, don't worry. Listen, do you still remember where the clothes store is?"

"Um... yeah..."

"Well, meet me there again. I haven't had anything to eat yet, either, so maybe I can get us both something to eat. It looks like this rain might clear up soon, and I have a couple of umbrellas lying around, anyway."

"You won't get sick too, right?" The PiX asked. She didn't want anyone else hurting themselves because of her.

"No, I won't, I promise," Emi assured her, "It'll be okay. Maybe we can even see Natsumi in the hospital later on . If you want to, anyway."

"... I would want to... very much..."

"Okay. Well, I'm going to call Yuni back now. Maybe I can get her to come as well. I'll see you later."

"Okay. See you.. Emi."

The two did meet together later on. As they went to get food, the two talked about a lot of things. Violet even told Emi who she was and where she came from- which included why she was so tiny- and Emi didn't get freaked out or anything. She just kept on listening as the two bonded for a while, and they eventually met up with Yuni and Akira later on. Rage had seemed to be busy at the time and Alice was always doing her own things, anyway. Emi tried to keep everyone optimistic and humorous, but it was hard. Especially for Violet, who didn't have much of an appetite the entire time. Emi, Yuni, even Akira tried saying things that would make her feel better, but right now was just a weird time for the little PiX. And in the middle of their lunch, Natsumi's cell phone rang. Violet was too afraid to answer it, so Emi answered for her. "Hello? Who's this?"

"Hello. Do you happen to know my daughter, Natsumi Kuzuki?"

-End of chapter 4-


	5. Chapter 5: Strangers Are Never Forgotten

Hi guyzzzz. XD Ugh, Bizz is having writer's block... but anyways, chapter 5. Things are finally getting interesting now, huh? Zomg, Akiraaa :D -Slapped- But well.. as my fountain of ideas was going dry I all of a sudden got it going again somehow when I was thinking of something... note that some of this inspiration comes at like 1-3 in the morning XD Maybe later.. and I can't help but think there was something important that I was going to put here, but I forgot. o-O But anyways, onto chapter 5! And I had the HARDEST time thinking up a name for this chapter...

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Chapter 5- Strangers Are Never Forgotten

"Uh.. yes. This is her mother, then?" Emi asked, nervousness in her voice.

"Yes, I am. Who might you be?"

"Uh.. I'm her friend, Emi. Natsumi is.. in the hospital at the moment..."

".. Oh dear Lord, what happened?" The motherly concern came into her voice, something a lot of people were familiar with.

"She is really sick, I guess. Some other friends and I were going to go see her."

"Well, I'll take a few minutes out of here to go see her. But wow... how did that happen so fast? Oh, Natsumi..." Her mother hung up quickly after that, and Emi sighed. She was relieved that her mom didn't have a worse reaction than that and even start blaming them for it. "So, guys.. would you like to go see how Natsumi is doing, then?" Emi asked the others. There was some hesitation, especially from Violet, before Yuni nodded, the others following.

As they all together began their walk to the hospital, they were a little unaware of the two girls that decided to follow them. One of them started to giggle and burst into laughter while the other one started hitting her in the head with a stick. "You fool! You'll get us noticed!!" Though the girl still couldn't control her continuous giggles. "I'm sorry... it's just that one guy is so hot!"

"What?" Akira had heard this comment and turned around. The others stopped walking along with him and turned to face the girls, with Yuni looking a little annoyed.

"SEE?? They noticed us!! Thanks a lot!!" The girl who seemed to be in some sort of bat outfit- which turned out to actually be real- started hitting the other girl in the head with the stick again. She was still in the middle of a giggling fit, and was right about the size of the other girl, but almost looked like a fairy. "I'm sorry, but that one girl looks so pissed off!!! She's his girlfriend, isn't he??" The girl eventually managed to say, pausing her laughing fit, then continuing again right after she was done talking.

"Who are you?" Emi asked in a serious tone. This seriousness caused the two girls to stop their bickering, and the bat girl replied, "And why should you know?" while the other girl who was finally finishing her laugh attack replied, "They call me Bizz. And this is... Evil Zukin." Zukin then proceeded to hitting Bizz in the head with the stick again. "Don't tell them my name!! No one needs to know!!"

"Well, you know I get afraid when people act serious! You heard that girl! She sounded mad..."

"Listen," Emi said, breaking up the argument again, "I want to to tell us truthfully- were you following us?"

"That's none of your buisness," Evil Zukin spat back in a rude tone of voice. Bizz, however, told them the truth again. "Well, yes, but it's because we have nothing better to do. It's not like we were going to for too long anyway, but wow..." Bizz then started to stare at Akira, her eyes sparkling like something you'd see in an anime with a girl staring romatically at a boy she likes. Violet looked at Bizz, curiosity forming again. She had been sitting on Emi's shoulders, as she did with Natsumi, though it didn't feel the same to her.

Yuni stepped right in front of the two, annoyed with Zukin, but especially annoyed at Bizz. "Unless you want us to call the police, you'd better get out of here."

"B-But--" Bizz began, but was cut off by Zukin. "Make us," The Zukin had replied. Bizz shoved Zukin away and begin to finish what she was going to say. "It's also because I think I remember seeing you." She had pointed at Yuni, and Yuni had started to get a little confused. "Huh? When?"

"I- I was seven years old," Bizz began, stammering a bit in nervousness, "You were with that one dude standing next to you," Bizz then pointed to Akira. "Y- You were getting ice cream and I had gotten some with you, b- but Zukin then stole mine. And then... andthenandthen y- you... got another one for me. You made me happy, but after that I never really got to see you again that much." Bizz started to get into some kind of emotional, dramatic mood, and Zukin just folded her arms and went "Hmph. So what? It was just ice cream."

"But I still remember. I still remember from that day... and now I know that a stranger is just a friend you haven't met yet." And even though the phrase sounded cheesy, it was still touching, you'd have to admit. Yuni had been in though for a moment, but then muttered, "I think I _do_ remember..."

"Well, if you promise not to follow anymore random pedestrians, then you can join us," Emi offered.

Evil Zukin didn't say anything. "We accept!" Bizz answered, even though the bat girl growled a bit.

"Well, we're going to see a friend at the hospital. If you'd like to come, then you can." Emi smiled at the two, and Yuni just sighed. Emi bent down to Bizz's ear and whispered, "But, just to let you know, Akira is already Yuni's boyfriend. So, don't hit on him, because it kind of freaks Akira out and makes Yuni mad." Emi had started to giggle a bit, along with Bizz, and even though Violet had heard most of what Emi said since she was on her shoulders, she didn't really say anything, though she did smile. Yuni blinked. "Emi... what are you laughing at?"

"Oh, it's nothing," Emi replied, still smiling, "Now let's go, guys!"

Once the six arrived at the hospital, Emi went up to a woman at the main desk. The woman had been looking through files for a minute, and then she looked up to see Emi. "Oh, pardon me," She said, "Did you need something?"

"Oh, it's okay. We've.. come here to see a friend," Emi replied.

"Oh, I see. What is her name?"

"Natsumi Kuzuki."

"All right, one moment..." The woman continued to look at files, and then pulled one out. "I believe she's over in room 117," The woman then replied. "I'll get one of the nurses to escort you there. I believe we had a visitor there earlier, though..."

Emi nodded. "All right." She had wondered if the earlier visitor that the woman had mentioned had been Natsumi's mother, and also wondered if she was still there. Emi just sort of paid the thought no mind, and as a nurse started to talk up to the group, she and them, except for Zukin, greeted politely. She had then led them, through an elevator and then a long hallway, to room 117.

-End of chapter 5-

(Eh, the chapter was short again, I apologize. Lol x3 I love including a random character here and there named Bizz... so she's based off of me... and, Papersak, I was going to make Zukin just a random character appear at the end, but nah, I decided to make her more important. x3 Chapter 6 shall be coming soonz)


	6. Chapter 6: Happiness and Random Thoughts

I was looking at all the stories that were popular and had over, like, 50 reviews. Bizz knows that she probably won't get that many but as long as she can get a fewwww... But yes. Chapter 6. x3 By the way: A sequal to this story is now official. So when this one ends, Bizz is still goiiing! XD

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Chapter 6- Happiness and Random Thoughts (Lol, still having trouble with chapter namesss)

Natsumi's mother wasn't there, but it was obvious that she had been, for there was an opened box of candy sitting on the table next to her bed. She was awake and sitting up, but still seemed a little unsteady. She turned her head to see Emi and the others, along with two girls that she wasn't familiar with. She smiled warmly. "Hi guys," She said in a weak voice.

Violet immediately jumped off of Emi's shoulders and ran up to Natsumi. "Natsumi! I'm sorry, this is all Violet's fault! Violet should have went instead of you. Violet has felt so guilty..."

"You know, you don't have to worry so much about me," Natsumi said, still smiling, "I'll be fine, anyway. I heard that my mom called you earlier, though."

"Yeah... Emi answered it, though."

Emi and Yuni then went up to Natsumi with the PiX, the others still near the door. They were staring at different objects in the room, though Bizz was still staring at Akira. He did notice and was a little annoyed, but something else was on his mind. Something troubled him, something he wasn't sure of, but it's like he had remembered something that happened a while back.

"Natsumi... how are you feeling?" Yuni asked the purple-haired girl in bed.

"I'm feeling okay..." Natsumi replied, "My mom came in here earlier right after I woke up. She got me candy..." For some reason, Natsumi blushed, but in a cute way. She took a piece of chocolate out of the box of candy she recieved from her mother and offered it to Violet. The PiX looked at the candy in curiousity before taking it and eating it. Natsumi offered some candy to the others, but no one else wanted any except for Bizz. "I'm Bizz, by the way," She had said to Natsumi, smiling, "And this bat-girl right here is Evil Zukin." She resisted the temptation to have another giggling fit as she saw the annoyed look on Zukin's face. "Keep laughing, one day you'll be doing that in your grave," She had muttered to herself.

"Emi," Natsumi then said, "How exactly did I get here, though? I only remember running, feeling dizzy, and blacking out. Then I woke up here with a nurse staring down at me."

"Oh, well Yuni and Akira found you," Emi replied. Yuni smiled. "Yeah, and Akira was the one who called Emi to tell her about it. I had been too frightened at first."

"Also, Violet had been really worried," Emi told Natsumi, "She wouldn't eat much or anything. She had even called me, wondering where you were." Violet blushed a little bit. "Violet just didn't want Natsumi to die. Natsumi was the first human to treat Violet nicely."

"Well, Violet... I'm really sorry for making you worry," Natsumi replied with a bit of guilt.

"But it's okay! As long as Natsumi is okay, then Violet is okay!"

After a while, when the group started to leave, Akira had remained in the room for a second. Still staring at a wall, he said, "For some reason, I feel really bad at how I acted at the arcade."

".. Huh? Why?" Natsumi asked, taken by surprise.

"I was quiet and everything. I must've seemed like a jerk, right?"

"No.. you were just fine," Natsumi replied. She didn't know Akira had this side to him.

"Well, it's just the thing is," He continued, and had Natsumi wondering if he heard what she had just said, "I didn't like the idea of you in here after how I had acted. In a way, I felt like it was my fault."

"But it wasn't! I get sick a lot, it's the way I was born.. you have absolutely nothing to do with that."

"But... gah, I don't know... I just felt... really bad... I'm sorry..." He sighed and then left the room. Natsumi blinked, and then looked out the window next to her bed. The sun was out again, the clouds moving away from it. She then smiled. Maybe life here wasn't going to be so bad, after all.

After the group left, Emi had let Violet stay at her house for the night. Violet had tended to let her curiosity get the better of her, so she was caught a few times going through some of Emi's belongings. The PiX noticed numerous pictures of Emi with Rage, and she started to wonder about many things. She and Emi had been up late that night, as Violet had many questions about what love was really like. The PiX was young, and trapped on a strange planet with many things unfamiliar to her.

"Emi?" The PiX had wanted to ask her something before they both went to sleep.

"Yes, Violet?"

"Does Emi think that she and Rage will ever get married someday?"

Emi giggled a little at this. "Who knows, but hey, it'd be kind of nice. He's a nice guy... even if he _did_ earn his name from his temper."

The PiX giggled as well, and the two went to sleep without saying anything else.

-End of chapter 6-

(Sorry, I keep having writer's block and everything. There's something around two chapters of this fic left to go, so enjoy them, and remember that a sequal is coming! x3)


	7. Chapter 7: A Way Back Home

Well, eee. There's a bad storm right now. Bizz finds it amusing. x3 Chapter 7 is here, though! Yeay! Well, also, if you see any spelling mistakes or anything, I don't have any spelling or grammar checks on these documents.. but well, I try my best. And I mean, I saw like one DDR fanfic that had.. around 200 reviews? Or something... and another had, like, 50.. But, oh well, my writing may not be the best out there but I still like doing what I do, whatever I do I stick with it no matter what. Like how I had someone say to me that they hated DDR and wanted me to stop talking about it.. x3 And I've been really busy lately, so.. sorry about that. I have a good friend that's going to be gone for three weeks starting Wednesday... so writing will probably help me find something to do. x3 Well, I love writing anyway.. like I said, I do what I do and I stick with it. But well... onto chapter 7 nowz.

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Chapter 7- A Way Back Home

Natsumi was let out of the hospital the next day. As she was walking outside of it, she realized that she had been lost again, but she actually didn't care all that much. For now, even though it was weird, she almost enjoyed being lost. She was aimlessly wandering around like some stray animal on the streets, but she didn't mind it. Finding herself at some public park, she decided to sit under a tree as she watched some little kids play around. Violet had returned Natsumi's cell phone to her when they had all been at the hospital, and so she was glad to at least have her phone with her. For now, it was just one of those moments where you just dream to yourself...

"Hey, out of the hospital already?" Came a voice through Natsumi's scattered thoughts. She snapped to attention and looked up to see Rage standing over her, and in an instant she stood up. "Uh, yeah.." She replied, a little embarrassed.

"Yeah, I'm sorry that I wasn't able to visit you yesterday. There was a lot of crap going on, and so I had a lot of things to do..." Rage looked up for a second, but then returned to the conversation, "But, yeah. How're you feeling?"

"Oh, I'm feeling okay. I guess I just pushed myself a little too hard earlier." Natsumi had wondered how she all of a sudden had all of these guys apologizing to her out of nowhere, but she figured that it was better than them just not caring at all.

"Well, hey, then don't push yourself so much next time unless you want people to worry!" Rage laughed a bit, Natsumi laughing along with him. "Well, I better get going, there's some stuff I still need to do today... I wish I didn't have to, but well, you know how it is." Rage turned around and started to walk away, but suddenly halted and turned back to the girl under the tree. "I just realized. You still don't know this place, do you?"

Natsumi sweatdropped and was about to say something, but the look on her face was enough for Rage to know that Natsumi actually was lost. Rage had offered to bring her back to her house, but Natsumi had asked him to take her to Emi's instead. She wanted to get Violet first. However, on their way, they ran into Bizz. She looked as if she wasn't doing too well.

"What the-- where did you come from?" Rage asked, but no respond came from the fairy girl. She just looked up at Rage for a minute, and then looked down again. Her face was blank, but it sounded as if she were almost singing something to herself, but it was barely audible. Natsumi blinked. "Bizz, are you okay?"

".. Uh?" Bizz finally replied, seeming to have returned from her absence of mind, "I'm sorry. I was.. thinking of something."

"Thinking of what?" Natsumi asked, with Rage seeming kind of confused. "Wait, are you that weird Bizz girl Emi was telling me about on the phone earlier?"

"Uh, yeah.. probably," Bizz replied, "And I'm sorry, Natsumi. It's.. just that I was thinking of someone."

"Heh, it wasn't Akira, was it?" Natsumi teased, and Bizz turned red. "No, it wasn't! It was someone different! Someone I might never see again..."

"Aw.. did something bad happen?" Natsumi asked in concern, but Bizz shook her head. "It's not that he hates me or anything, we just had to part one day and I never knew where exactly he went. I guess it's just that Akira reminded me of him. I... well... you see, it's weird when you don't know where you came from." She sighed and looked up at a butterfly flittering past her head. "I don't know. I get like this every once in a while. I don't feel well." Bizz began to walk away, and she soon found herself running, as if she were being chased. "Bizz, wait.. !" Natsumi shouted, but the young girl was already too far away to hear.

"Eh, she's probably just having one of those days," Rage said with a shrug, "I mean, I know how it feels. It happens to me, too." Natsumi had nodded in agreement, though she had looked back again, Bizz now completely away from her view.

"Hey, Natsumi, do you recall seeing any other paitents at the hospital?" Rage had asked all of a sudden when they were halfway to Emi's house.

"Like, which ones?" Natsumi replied.

"Well, like, any weird-looking ones in particular?"

"Well, I did see one with a purple afro, but.."

Rage then burst out in a fit of laughter. Natsumi looked at him in confusion, and Rage had said, "Haha, so the rumors _were_ true after all!"

Natsumi blinked. "What do you mean.. ?"

"Boldo. They said he broke his leg playing DDR. He was dared to do something that went over his limits." Rage finished his laughing fit, and the way he sometimes broke into laughter was similar to what Bizz had always done, except he had done it less often.

"Broke his leg playing DDR.. ?" Natsumi was reminded of a story her friend Moe had told her. Something about some guy trying something really hard on a DDR machine and passed it, but twisted his leg in the process. She snickered to herself, even though she felt sort of bad about it. She had just been in the hospital too, after all.

Afterwards, on the rest of the way to Emi's house, the two didn't really say much else. When they arrived, and Rage knocked on the door, it took a minute, but then the door opened, and Emi appeared at the doorway. "Oh, Natsumi, you're out of the hospital already? And hi, Rage!" Emi's cheerful face made Natsumi smile. "Hi, Emi. Yeah, she had been kind of lost though," Rage replied, "But she wanted me to take her to your house. We saw Bizz along the way. She seemed kind of upset, though."

"Oh, I see. But, upset? Why?"

"She said she was thinking about some guy she knew a long time ago. She said that Akira reminded her of him. I wonder what he'd think..." There were a few snickers, and soon Violet appeared from behind Emi. "Natsumi? Natsumi is here? She's better already?" Her little eyes met Natsumi's, and soon, the PiX's eyes started to sparkle in excitement. "Yay!" She cheered, jumping into Natsumi's arms. "Haha, hey Violet," Natsumi replied, laughing.

After the two were reunited, Rage said, "I have to go, would you mind bringing her home for me, Emi?"

"Heh, no problem," Emi replied with a wink. Rage let out a small smile and left. Soon after, Natsumi, Violet, and Emi started heading to Natsumi's house. They talked a little bit, but the real commotion didn't start until they were walking by the pizza palace. Emi happened to notice a rather oddly-dressed boy staring at them, and even though it took a bit, Emi did recognize him. He recognized her, too, and so before Emi could say anything, he said, "Hey, Emi, is that what I think that is?"

"Huh?" A puzzled Emi replied. Violet noticed that he was looking right at her, and so she hid behind Natsumi in fear.

"I heard about it, but I wanted proof... you're a lost PiX, aren't you? I know a way to get you back home!"

-End of chapter 7-

(The dude that Bizz mentions plays a major role in the sequal, so sorry if that was confusing to you.. this simply was a weird and confusing chapter, wasn't it? Lol, sorry about that.. my writing style is weird sometimes... by the way, the story that Moe told Natsumi is something that my friend really did tell me XD)


	8. Chapter 8: Farewells and Ice Cream

Well... last chapter. Yup. Probably not too sad, though, since a sequal is coming... and I'll probably get it going as fast as this one. The next one's going to be more exciting... but I'm not spoiling anything yet! And, look, this chapter's actually long! o: Rawr... I do have a few readers, I know that.. so... time for chapter 8, and I hope you enjoyed this story:D And sorry if it was kinda weird, or maybe even boring, but the sequal's going to be full of action and stuffs. :D Weeeeeee. But, even though this kinda probably isn't all that improtant, Bizz apologizes for only putting a disclaimer in the 1st chapter. I dunno, that fact just makes me.. feel weird. o.O But, as you all already know: Bizz does not own DDR or any of the characters or songs or... anything. Bizz only plays it. :D But, of course, Bizz's OCs and stuff do belong to her, though. So, if you want to use them, then ask Bizzy permission. Or else. o:

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Chapter 8- Farewells and Ice Cream

"Wait.. Astro?" Emi said, "How do you--" The boy, who was obviously Astro, cut Emi off again. "I've been doing research. Charmy and I have developed something that can you to different worlds. I was waiting for her over here. Her shift here at the pizza palace should be about done soon."

"You mean, you already know everything?" A bewildered Emi asked, Natsumi just standing confused and silent while the PiX was still hiding behind her.

"Well, I've been studying it... wow, I'm sorry if I startled you, but... wow!" Astro then turned to the direction of where the pizza palace was as the door opened, and a green-haired girl walked out, who was also wearing a peculiar outfit. "Hey, Charmy!" Astro called out to her from across the street, "Come take a look at this!"

Charmy, who had been the girl across the street, had looked at Astro and the others for a minute. Natsumi wondered if she had been as surprised as Astro just then, for she had stared for a while, but then eventually shook it off. Finding an oppritunity to cross the street, she walked up to the others, waving. "Hi!" She said with a smile. A 'charming' smile... "So, Astro, you really did find one?"

"Well, technically, I think Emi did," Astro replied, "She was just walking and... gah..."

_"Isn't he done with his dramatic episode yet.. ?"_ Natsumi thought to herself. She didn't exactly want to say that to his face, but it annoyed her a bit how he was acting over discovering that a PiX was living in the town.. even though, when you thought of it that way, it was kind of a big deal, but it didn't have to bring such.. _attention._ _"My head hurts..."_ Natsumi thought again.

"Can PiX ask what's going on?" Violet asked from behind the confused Natsumi. Astro turned to the PiX and smiled. "I'm sorry if I startled you. You see, me and Charmy here have a thing for.. well, outer space and such. So, we both like to research and heard rumors that something happened on a planet called Velocity, and three PiX were sent to other planets, one being sent here to Earth. But, I had no clue that you would be _here..._"

"Well, Violet the PiX can't exactly remember why she was sent here," Violet said, finally coming out of her hiding place, "All she knows is that Earth is a confusing place.. especially with love."

"Love, eh?" Charmy replied, interrupting whatever Astro was about to say next. Violet nodded, and Charmy laughed a bit. "Well, love practically _everywhere_ is confusing. It's not really something that you can understand in one day, but feeling it is an absolutely wonderful thing." She smiled at Astro, who immediately turned red. Violet started jumping up and down impatiently. "C'mon, tell PiX how she can return home!" She shouted, which only made Charmy laugh some more while Astro was still in his speechless mode. "All right, all right," The green-haired girl replied, still laughing. She nudged Astro a few times. "Well?"

"... Eh, right," Astro eventually replied, still a little red, "Let's go." And along their way to Astro's house- which was where he and Charmy had studied most of the time- Charmy had said to the other three with a wink, "By the way, my name's Charmy Anderson, and Astro's name is really Kouru Mackenzie.. but we like calling him Astro, and, well, you probably know why." For some reason, this had made Natsumi smile, but probably because she had just met two more new friends. Emi had seen Natsumi smile and smiled as well. Violet, however, just looked up at the sky.

Sure enough, however, you could probably guess that they were to run into Bizz again, except this time she had been with Evil Zukin again. Evil Zukin hissed, and Bizz just started another familiar laughing fit. "Oh, I'm sorry! Heh, what a coincidence to run into you two times today!"

"Bizz!" Natsumi had said, "You seem better already! What happened?"

"Well, I guess I was just having a moment there. Heh." Bizz sweatdropped while Zukin just made a gagging noise and looked away. Bizz sighed, then continued the conversation, "So, how are you this evening? And who are these two?"

"I'm Charmy," Charmy replied with yet another wink, "And this is Astro! .. Or, at least, we call him Astro." She giggled and Astro turned red again. "Charmy, how do you always find all these ways to embarrass me?" He said with a groan.

"Oh, that's pretty cool," Bizz replied, "I'm Bizz. Or, if you didn't know, my real name is Marly Izu. But I like being called Bizz."

"Because you're so freakin' weird," Zukin muttered under her breath. Bizz had slightly heard her, but paid it no mind.

"Hey," Emi had suddenly broke in, her instinct of always gathering friends together showing again, "Would you and Zukin like to join us, Bizz?"

"Ooh, really??" Bizz had replied before Evil Zukin could protest, "For what?"

"We're going to bring Violet back home to her planet," Astro said, finally getting over his embarrassment, "I'm assuming that you already know that she came from planet Velocity?"

"PiX only told Emi and Natsumi, but she thinks that some others probably knew also," Violet told Astro.

"Well, I don't know, I think I kinda heard of it before somewhere," Bizz replied, Zukin then afterwards sighing and asking, "Can't we just go already, then?? I wanna get this over with."

"Zukin, quit being so rude all the time!" Bizz snapped, but Astro only said, "It's okay, we should get going anyways, since it's starting to get a little late."

So, the group continued on, though they did talk a little more on the way. When they finally reached Astro's house, he led them inside, then to his basement, where Charmy and him did their work on studying and inventing. Emi noticed a strange-looking machine in a corner of the basement room, but Charmy answered all her questions before she could even ask them. "Well," She began, "That weird-looking gizmo over there is what me and Astro have currently been working on. It has the power to bring you to other places. Even different countries, wrolds, planets... all that sort. We have tested it: we sent an acorn over to Astro's living room." Charmy started to giggle again, Astro remaining silent, and then continued, "So... if you want, me and Astro can start this thing up, and the PiX can return home.

"Wow... how do you come up with this sort of thing?" Natsumi asked, but Charmy only smiled and said, "Careful studying and planning, my friend."

"Well, Violet... what're you waiting for?" Emi asked the PiX who had now been on Natsumi's shoulders like always. Violet sighed and replied, "Violet wants to go back home, but will she ever see all of you again?"

"Don't worry about that," Charmy said, "You see, you'll be teleported to a certain secret area, like maybe under a certain bush or something. And, so, whenever this thing is on, if you return to that place that you came from, then you'll be able to return here. This machine uses the familiar ways of portal technology, as in, traveling through portals."

"... Well... okay..." Violet replied after a little hesitation, "But Violet the PiX wants you to promise to leave it on sometimes, like, just in case I miss you a whole lot and wish to return. Because Violet knows it will happen."

Charmy and Astro both nodded, and so, as they turned on the strange machine and a portal started to appear, Violet jumped off of Natsumi's shoulders. Astro said, "All you do is just name where you want to go, or think really hard of it, and it will take you there." And with that, the PiX shouted in first person, "Big strange machine-thingy, take me to planet Velocity of the Stellar Galaxy!" And jumped through the swirling, colorful portal, which glowed for a few seconds, then returned to normal. The group could hear the PiX's voice before she had left completely: "Farewell for now, friends from Earth! Especially you, Natsumi!" And even though Violet couldn't hear her, Natsumi had quietly muttered to herself, "And farewell to you too, Violet."

The next day, Emi, Rage, Bizz, Zukin, Alice, Natsumi, Akira, and Yuni had all met at that same arcade where Emi had brought Natsumi to meet her and some of the others. Charmy had to work, and Astro had said that he just had other things to do. Emi just assumed that he didn't like going places without Charmy around or something related to that, but she just shook that idea off as they had all did they thing they loved to do- play DDR. Even Bizz, who had already played it many times before. Afterwards, they met at the park that had been familiar to Natsumi, the one that she hung around after she was let out of the hospital. They had ice cream, which was mainly Bizz's suggestion. But of course.

Later that day, when Natsumi was at home, her friend Moe had called her for the first time since she had moved away.

"Natsu?"

"Yes, Moe?"

"... Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry that I haven't called you. Haha, so, how are you, whore?"

"Oh, I'm fine. Heh, I went to the hospital once, but it wasn't all that big, really."

"... Wow, what happened?"

"I was sick and pushed myself a little too hard. But, really, I'm fine."

"Well... okay, just wondering. Well, have you made any new friends? Me, Ri, and Kim have all been kind of worried about you, y'know."

"Well, it's okay, really. And heh, I've made a whole bunch of new friends. I mean, it isn't the same as having you and the others around... but, hey, I'm starting to have a little fun here, really."

"Heh... have you seen any hot guys yet?"

"Hahaha, there were a few, but they were all taken. But, well, I don't really care about having a boyfriend or anything right now."

"Heh, yeah, you've always been like that... oh, well, do they have DDR there?"

Even though Moe couldn't see it, Natsumi smiled. "Oh, yes, they do. Oh, do they ever..."

"Haha, excellent!" Moe had smiled as well, though Natsumi couldn't see it, either.

-The End-


End file.
